I just got home from New Orleans. We drove down, stayed downtown a short walk from the French Quarter, and spent four nights exploring the city mostly on foot.
Every photo on this page is one I took on the trip. Here is how we spent our days, the tips I would pass along, and a printable version to take with you.
New Orleans at a glance
- When I went
- Late October, four nights
- Getting around
- On foot, the streetcar and an Uber now and then
- Where we spent our time
- The French Quarter, Frenchmen Street and the riverfront
- Where we stayed
- Downtown, a short walk from the French Quarter
- My must-do
- A tour to get your bearings, then just walk around downtown
How we spent our days
Wednesday
Muffulettas and a Mississippi sunset
We pulled into town, had a muffuletta and gumbo at Chapin's Cafe on Baronne Street, and then just walked. We caught the sunset over the Mississippi, found a bookstore stacked floor to ceiling with a cat in charge, watched the lights come on in Jackson Square, and stopped by the Roosevelt.
Muffuletta at Chapin's Cafe 
The entrance ceiling at the Roosevelt Thursday
Aquarium, vampires and the streetcar
We started the morning at the Audubon Aquarium and Insectarium, and it was really cool. A white alligator, seahorses and a lot of bugs.
Then we headed into the French Quarter, stopped in a vampire shop and had lunch at the Vampire Café on Royal Street, the one with the drinks in blood bags. After that we just wandered and rode the streetcar around for a while.
That evening we took an Uber out to the cemeteries where the Canal Street streetcar starts and rode it back in. We ended the night walking Bourbon Street and the French Quarter.
The white alligator at the aquarium 
Seahorses at the aquarium Friday
Bookshops, beignets and a ghost tour
We kept the whole day in the French Quarter. We browsed Beckham's Bookshop, then Faulkner House Books. The plaque out front says William Faulkner wrote his first novel there in 1925.
We stopped for beignets, and after dark we took a ghost and vampire walking tour through the Quarter. The ghost tours are pretty cool. I think the cemetery one is better than the downtown one. They were pretty busy, but they were good. It really depends on your tour guide, so they can be hit or miss, like any tour.
Faulkner House Books 
Beignets, of course 
The LaLaurie Mansion, a stop on our ghost tour Saturday
Frenchmen Street and the Krewe of Boo
We spent the afternoon on Frenchmen Street and in the Marigny. We found the Louisiana Music Factory for vinyl, then wandered the side streets past colorful old houses and bougainvillea.
That night we watched the Krewe of Boo Halloween parade come down Canal Street. The parades are really fun.
Louisiana Music Factory on Frenchmen Street 
Green shutters in the Marigny Sunday
Café du Monde in City Park, then home
Before the drive home we stopped at Café du Monde in City Park for coffee and beignets.
Café du Monde in City Park
My tips for a first trip
- On your first trip, do the tours. The hop-on hop-off tour is a good way to get your bearings around the city, and once you learn the main streets, it's pretty easy to navigate. Then just walk around downtown.
- Plan on a lot of walking. We walked almost everywhere, and it made for really fun days.
- Keep your days close to the French Quarter. After one evening of driving out past City Park, we decided we didn't want to go that far in a day and spent the rest of the trip in and around the Quarter.
- Ride the streetcar. We rode it a lot, including the Canal Street line back from the cemeteries, and it was a fun way to get around the city.
- Try a food tour. I've done a few tours in New Orleans, and I really liked the food tour. I also did one that went all over the city and talked about Hurricane Katrina, and that one was pretty good.
- Go to City Park. The sculpture garden is lovely.
- If you like museums, New Orleans has some amazing ones. The aquarium is great for people who love animals, and there are a lot of swamp tours you can do.
- If you love art, there are so many amazing local artists, and lots of shopping. And music for days.
- Do a little research on restaurants. Skip the tourist traps and go where the locals go, or where the reviews are really good. A lot of really good restaurants aren't in the French Quarter at all, including Michelin-star restaurants.
- Plan around what you like. I've been to New Orleans five times and had five different trips. It really depends on who you're traveling with and what kind of trip you want.
- The trip is very customizable depending on your interests, and that's where I can help. Tell me what you like, and I'll give you a really good recommendation on what to see and do.
More of my photos
Saved for my next trip
When I posted about this trip, friends sent me their favorites. These went straight on my list for next time.
The Chart Room
An afternoon of people watching.
Fritzel's on Bourbon Street
Live jazz in a small room.
Pat O'Brien's
The courtyard at night.
The Court of the Two Sisters
A drink or a meal in the courtyard.
Brennan's
Bananas Foster.
Commander's Palace
Dinner.
A nighttime cemetery tour
Just right for New Orleans this close to Halloween.
Take this guide with you
The printable version has my photos, my day-by-day notes and my tips on a few pages. Save it to your phone or print it for the trip.
Common New Orleans questions
How did you get around New Orleans?
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Mostly on foot. We also rode the streetcar a lot and took an Uber now and then.
Is the French Quarter walkable?
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Yes. We walked it most days and spent most of the trip in and around it.
Can you plan a New Orleans trip for me?
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Yes. Tell me a little about who is going and what you like to do, and I will put together a plan that fits. Awaken Travels is based in Soddy-Daisy, just north of Chattanooga.